An Artist's Grief
by AmayaAmazing
Summary: A poor almost homeless artist, on the brink of destruction meets a rich young woman who offers to buy one of his sketches. This leads to a life changing expierence, and everything in his life comes together, or does it?
1. I Knew I was Done For

_Hello Again! It's been awhile, since I've written anything long like this. I'm not really sure how this is going to play out, and to be honest, I'm writing just to write. But, any of those who choose to be entertained by this, I thank you. __ So. Just to be safe, I do not own, any of the characters. At all. And, due to my forgetfulness, this will be the only disclaimer. This fanfiction, as you already know is called, An Artists Grief. Though, the title is subject to change. So, I hope you all enjoy, as I had a LOT of fun writing this chapter. _

"Kid. Your rent was due two weeks ago." The landlord said. A man of sixty-three, short and fat, with balding grey hair, small squinty grey eyes, and thin serious lips. I pursed my lips at him and frowned.

"Please, sir." I resolved to begging, putting my pride aside. "I barely have money to feed myself. I just, really can't pay you this week."

"Listen kid, I got people lining up to live in this place. And, I know you got it rough, so I'll give you till the end of this month. If you don't have it, find you anotha' place to live, 'cause I ain't no charity." He said roughly.

"And I'm not a charity case." I muttered under his breath, denying the truth. I closed the door in the older man's face, and flopped onto a torn up chair, burying my head into my hands.

The truth was, I needed help. As my family said, before disowning me, art was no career to go into. I was low on food, only a loaf of bread, and a small amount of cheese left in the cupboard. I had thirty-seven cents left, in a can next to the bed, not enough to pay for anything, except maybe a pack of cheap gum.

But most importantly, I was low on supplies. Only a few poor quality 4B, 6B, HB pencils, and one ebony. I had a few broken pastels, in brown, pink, and orange, and a small nub of a charcoal stick. As for paints, only a container of white and black remained, as well as a few small tubes of red, blue, and yellow. And, the worst part of the situation was, I was down to five sheets of sketching paper, and two canvases.

I had been keeping a careful tab on this for the past few weeks, and I sold a few of my works for small amounts of money on the street, which I used to buy food, and if there was any extra, shampoos and such were purchased. As soon as my supplies ran out though, I knew I was done for.

Sighing in exasperation, I grabbed the five-paged sketchpad, a HB pencil, a 4B pencil, a carving knife, and an old scratched up jacket and headed out the door. I walked a mile or so to the park, and sat down on the bench. I placed the sketchpad in my lap, and laid the pencils and the small knife on the bench next to me. I grabbed the HB pencil, and sharpened it gently, concentrating on not carving too much on the poor pencil, which was being held together with a small amount of glue and tape. After reaching as close to perfection as I could get, I brought the pencil to the paper, and made the first thin soft line, indulging myself in the sound it made, and the feeling of the wood pressing against my hand. I sometimes doubted even trying to make it in the art world, but as soon as I found myself, loosing myself my work, I knew that it was worth it. I stared at the crystal clear waters, and allowed my hand to move freely across the page. After a few minutes, I glanced down at my work and corrected a few errors, by laying in a few spare lines. I bit my lip, knowing I couldn't afford to make any unfixable errors, I didn't have any erasers left. I proceeded to sketch in large details with the HB pencil, and then held the paper a foot away from me for a few moments, staring at the paper thoughtfully. I smiled at my work, knowing that this was a rather solid outline, and this could turn into a very fine piece with enough work. I decided to move on to putting in the small, barely noticeable details that would make the piece worth doing. That could make the piece sellable. I began to once again sharpen the edge of the pencil, this time the 4B.

"Is this seat taken?" I soaked in the sound of the voice. It was soft, yet sweet and confident. I looked up and wasn't surprised to see that the voice belonged to a beautiful woman, I began to absorb her features, as an artist normally would. Her hair, shoulder length, straight, and bubble gum pink, contrasted brilliantly with her pale skin and big forest green eyes. Her nose, perfectly straight, led to full round pink lips, and a perfect jaw line. My eyes traced down lower, following her smooth neck, and down to her chest, which was hinted at under a v-neck sweater, down to her flat stomach, and even lower to the swell of her hips, and finally to her tight jeans and black high top converse. I doubt she even noticed my thorough run through, which lasted only a few seconds.

"It is not." I said, gesturing to the spot next to me. She looked away, then looked back at me.

"Um, excuse me?" She asked, giving me an odd look, she chuckled lightly. "You think I was talking to you?" She asked laughing. I felt my face turn red, and I mentally smacked myself. I could tell she was relatively wealthy, and way out of my league, why would I automatically assume she was talking to me? Why was I so stupid? She must have seen the intrigued yet pissed expression on my face, as I continued the internal battle with myself. Was I like, hideous or something? Is that why she was laughing? I mean, I know I'm not the best looking guy ever, but I wasn't that bad. I had chin length black hair, big black eyes, full pale lips, and super pale skin, which I'm sure was a turn off. I was tall and thin, but not too thin, not too bad. But, I'm sure I don't look like that right now. I'm sure my hair is knotted and untidy, my skin smudged with graphite, and my clothes I knew where dirty, hole-y, and untidy. I'm sure I resembled an homeless person at the moment, and I'm sure I seemed a little crazy, though she was the one chuckling to herself.

"I'm just kidding." She said, laughing even harder. That broke my concentration. And I was confused. When, finally, I understood, I laughed awkwardly, as she sat down beside me.

"I'm sorry, that was rude". She held out a perfectly shaped hand in my direction. "I'm Sakura." She smiled warmly.

"It's quite alright", though I had already forgotten about the incident, "I'm Sai." I shook her hand, surprised at how warm and soft it was. She smiled back.

"Sai…" She murmured back at me. I nodded. "It is very nice to meet you Sai." I smiled and returned the polite gesture. "Now, to business." I perked an eyebrow at her, and she smiled at me again.

"Business?" I repeated back to her, curious.

"I wish to buy that when you finish it." She said, sternly. I tried to suppress the look of surprise that crossed my face. She frowned. "Now, for an artist of your caliber, I don't know if that's necessarily proticol, but you must take my plea into consideration. I simply adore this lake, and…I just want it so very badly." She murmured, my face was still a mask of surprise. "How much does your work usually go for? I'm willing to pay a high amount."

"Well, ma'am, good art doesn't come cheap…" I began, she nodded earnestly. I shook my head. "I have a guilty conscience Sakura. I must admit, I was going to throw out a really high number, and convince you that you were getting a deal. But, I'm going to be honest with you Sakura, you seem like a nice girl. I'll give you three guesses as to what my last painting, a five foot by five foot canvas, with a gorgeous view of downtown Kohana went for." I paused for half a second, and then replied, "Ten god damn dollars." Her eyes widened.

"Sai. Finish the god damn painting." She murmured, turning to look back at the lake. Without another word, I finished sharpening the pencil, and brought the pencil to the paper once again, with a new found passion. And, within a matter of tense minutes, I looked at the drawing once more. I quickly signed the bottom right hand corner, as all artists did, and I flipped it over and signed the back. I handed it to her and her awaiting fingers took it, and replaced the piece of paper with an envelope, the word Sai, written across it in perfect cursive.

"It was a pleasure to do business with you Sai." She said softly, standing up. I looked up at her, curiosity burning in my eyes, as she sauntered away. I watched in awe as her hips swayed back and forth in time with the swish of her hair, and clutched carefully in her left hand was my drawing. I shoved the envelope in my pocket, and more carefully placed the knife and pencils into the other pocket of my baggy jeans. I put the rest of the sketchbook under my arm, and walked slowly back to my place.

I closed the door behind me, and laid the supplies in my pocked down on the small table next to the chair. I pulled the envelope out of my pocked, and sat down on the chair. I carefully cut open the envelope, and almost passed out as I looked inside.

_So, I hope you liked it. I would really, really, really appreciate reviews, they really inspire me. I enjoy constructive criticism, and since I write these things chapter by chapter, you can always give me suggestions. So, review. And, I'll have the next chapter up soon. _


	2. A Smile Plastered On My Face

I felt slightly light headed as I shuffled through the contents of the envelope…And by contents, I meant hundred dollar bills. There had to be at least forty of them. My eyes began to water slightly as I fell to the ground. Then I began to laugh. Hysterically. I shoved the envelope into my pocket, and ran out the door, and kept running until I reached the bank.

"I want to make an account-please." I gasped, tacking the "please" onto the end quickly. She smiled warmly at me, an attractive woman, big breasted and blonde.

"Sure, just fill out this form, and choose how much you wish to deposite.". I snatched the form out of her hand and pratically skipped over to the chairs in the waiting room.

Name: Sai Inuzuki

Age: 18

Address: 1824 Kohana Avenue

Phone number: N/A

Email address: N/A

Deposite Amount:

He began to shuffle through the contents of the envelope. "One, two…fifty-seven." I grinned, "Fifty seven hundred. Five thousand, seven hundred fucking dollars." I laughed quierlt, writing down the amount.

Deposite Amount: 5,700.

Signature: _Sai Inuzuki_

Bank tellers aproval:

Bank Teller's Signature:

I brought the paper up to the lady at the desk.

"Excuse me ma'am." I said, holding the paper out to her. She looked over the paper, and smiled at me. She began to type it into a computer.

"Inuzuki, Sai. Are you part of THE Inukuki family? Wait, you're Danzo's son right?" She looked back up at me.

"I was." I said stiffly. She nodded in understanding.

"Age, eighteen. Address…You don't currently have a phone number or email?" I shook my head.

"Getting a phone is my next priority." I laughed, she joined me.

"Now, sir. I must ask, it's protocol, about how you came upon such a large quantity of money." She looked a little nervous, and I started laughing.

"I suppose it may look a bit like I stole it." I chuckled. "I'm an artist, ma'am. I made my first big sell." She smiled.

"Congratulations!" She exclaimed. She pulled out a piece of paper, and began writing down things. She handed it to me, and I began to read it.

Tsunade

_1-294-4i2-4i24, Oil pastel painting of a black vase with red flowers in it. Preferably framed, 4ft by 6ft. Pay: Range from 5,000 to 10,000. _

My eyes widened, and I looked up at her and smiled. I grabbed the envelope out of my pocket and pulled the contents out of the envelope. A small piece of paper that I hadn't noticed before slipped out. I picked it up and shoved it into my pocket, and handed Tsunade the money. She handed me a checkbook.

"You know how to use one of these right?" She asked, I smiled.

"Yup."

"Okay, good. Call me when you finish that piece, and if you need anymore checks just stop by. You have a nice day." I took the checkbook, and smiled.

"You too." I walked out the door, a smile plastered onto my face. I began to stroll over towards the AT&T store. While I was walking, I pulled out the small sheet of paper.

Sai,

Thank you for being honest with me, but I think your art is worth a lot more than you believe it is. I hope you enjoy having some spare cash.

-Sakura Haruno 330-567-9385

My eyes widened, and once again, a smile flashed across my face. I carefully placed the paper back into my pocket and pushed open the door to the office.

A few minutes later I walked out with an activated cell phone, with which I began to dial Sakura's number.

"Haruno, Hyuuga, Yamanaka residence, who may I ask is calling?" A female voice said on the line.

"Uh, yeah, hi. My name is Sai…Is Sakura there?" I asked, nervously.

"Yes, hold on…FOREHEAD!" I snickered quietly.

"WHAT DO YOU WANT PIG?" I heard another voice scream.

"PHONE!" The first voice screamed.

"Hello?" A sweet voice asked. I recognized it as the woman who bought the art work, Sakura.

"Hey Sakura, it's Sai. The one you got the-"

"No, no, Sai, I know. What's up?"

"I just want to thank you, for the-"

"It's no problem, and thank you for the beautiful drawing. I was also wondering if you wanted to go out for coffee or something sometime." Sakura muttered into the phone quietly.

"Well I m-m-mean. I-I-I, B-b-I would love to." I stuttered. She laughed.

"How about I meat you down at the ramen shop tomorrow at say, 6?" She asked.

"Sure, no problem." I said, "I'll see you then."

"See you." She said, before the line went dead. My face widened into a huge grin. I jogged over to the local store, and began to pick out some clothes. A few pairs of jeans, a few t-shirts, a sweater or two, a coat, and a pair of shoes later, I was in the check out line.

"Hello sir." The woman at the counter said. "Will this be all today?"

"Um…Yes please." I said politely, pulling out the checkbook. She smiled warmly at me.

"Very well then, that will be 42.50$, a check?" I nodded and quickly filled out the check, grinning. I handed it to her. "You have a nice day!" She called after I snatched the bag.

"You too." I walked back to my apartment, and changed into a fresh pair of jeans, a t-shirt, and the new shoes, high top converse. I set the checkbook on the chair and kneeled onto the floor and balanced the new total. I walked back out and knocked on the landlord's door.

"What do ya' want kid?" He demanded gruffly.

"I'm moving out. You can keep my down payment, and I just want to say thanks." I said, smiling. He looked shocked but nodded.

"Alright kid. I'll be seeing you." I nodded and walked back to my apartment, grabbed the checkbook and my art equipment and walked downtown to the new apartments on Suna Drive.

About an hour later I had filled out all the paperwork.

"When can you move in?" The woman demanded. She looked about twenty-five with a wolfish smile and dark eyes. Her hair was a bluish black, and in a ponytail. She had introduced herself as Anko.

"I was hoping, today." I said sincerely. She smiled.

"Great! I have your down payment, and rent is due a month from today." I nodded. "Here's the key, and a spare. And, a key to the mail boxes." She turned and walked out the door. I opened the apartment, and marveled at its beauty.

Solid black walls donned the entire apartment. In the living room, there was gleaming white carpet, a white bay window, and black curtains with white underneath them. There was a couch, black with white geometric shapes and white throw pillows with black satin designs. There was a black coffee table in front of the couch, with glass on top, and a silver chandelier.

I kept walking towards the kitchen, which was black and white tile floor, a white and black refrigerator, stove, the cupboards were white with black surfaces, and a black microwave. I walked towards the back bedroom, which was unfurnished besides a black wardrobe with white trim. I shrugged and walked towards the other bedroom, which had a big walk in closet, and was completely unfurnished, I loaded my art equipment into the room. In the back of that room, there was two steps, which led to a master bathroom, which was black with white trim, like everything else. The tub was black with white stripes, a black toilet, and a matching sink. There were two towels, fuzzy, one black and one white. And, outside the other rooms, there was a smaller bathroom with a shower sink and toilet.

I smiled, totally satisfied with the purchase. Satisfied, didn't compare to the feelings that I was having. I was ecstatic!

I grabbed one of the bath towels out of the bathroom and curled up on the couch. I slowly drifted off to sleep, with a smile on my face.

_Yuppp. So I am aware that Kiba's last name is Inuzuka, and that's really close to Inuzuki, but I did it without realizing it, and I don't really feel like changing it..._


	3. A Flash Of Pink

_How long has it been? Haha. I want to write this so bad, but unfortunately, I have a rather large art piece due soon, so it's my top priority._

I woke up without opening my eyes. I stayed like that breathing slowly and thinking about the amazing dream I just had. I didn't want to have to open my eyes and look around my shitty dirty apartment. I didn't want to have to look the old grumpy man in the face, and tell him I had no money to pay rent. I didn't want to-

"Mr. Inuzuki?" A voice called, followed by two shallow knocks on the door. I opened my eyes slowly, a grin covering my face as I realized that it all wasn't a dream.

"Hold on a moment." I said in my most formal voice. I stood up and folded the towel on the couch before answering the door. An attractive blonde was standing outside, wearing an orange cut off T-shirt, and tight blue jeans. Her long hair was in a ponytail, and long bangs framed the left side of her face. Big blue eyes, a straight nose, and thin lips donned that face.

"You're Sai right?" She demanded, not so formal this time. I nodded slowly, as she stepped inside. "Hi. I'm Ino Yamanaka." I recognized the voice and last name from when I had called Sakura's house the day before, though I didn't say anything. "Sakura's friend…" She added, eyeing me. I nodded once more. "Walk with me." She said slowly.

"Okay?" I said, grabbing the key off the table and locking the door behind me.

"Alright, listen buddy. There's a few things we need to talk about."

"Okay." I nodded.

"First off, this is the first date Sakura's been on since…" She trailed off. "Her last boyfriend." She murmured, looking back up at me. "And that was awhile ago, so I need you to make this special." I held up a hand to stop her.

"It isn't really a date though. It's just 'coffee or something'.

"That's a date you fool. She ASKED you OUT." She annunciated. "ANYWAYS, where are you taking her?"

"I'm no taking her anywhere." I snapped back, trying to further prove my point. "We're MEETING at the ramen shop."

"Okay, okay. What are you going to wear?" She demanded. I looked down.

"This." I gestured to my black T-shirt and jeans. She chuckled.

"No you're not." She said stiffly. I cocked an eyebrow. "It's shopping time." I hesitated naturally. "I'm paying." She specified, dragging me off towards the local store.

I stood behind her as she piled stuff into my arms, without even glancing at the price tags. A few minutes later, she was pushing me towards the changing room, my eyes widened as she looked around and darted into the room with me.

"Put on this, and…this." She threw some clothes at me, and dramatically looked away while I changed. I whistled at her when I finished. She looked at me and laughed. "That'll do. She grabbed everything she gathered up everything and threw it in a cart, and dragged me towards another section of the store.

After grabbing shaving a kit and I'll admit, it had been awhile since I had shaved with something not rusty, some cologne, and a bouquet of cherry blossoms, she paid for everything, without accepting a thank you. She handed me two hundred dollars, and a small card with a fancy restaurant named scrawled on it.

"Take her there, you have reservations. Give her these. Pay with this." I stared at her for several moments, before she blushed.

"Don't mess this up kid, or I'll hurt you." She grinned, then chuckled. "When she told me, I was so confused. Why would Sakura go after some trashy teenager off the street? But there's something about you." She laughed again. "I can't wait to see how you look when you get cleaned up." She then hailed a taxi, and walked away, leaving me standing there, confused, but happier then I had ever been in my life.

I walked home, taking my time, when I had finally arrived; I shaved, and took a shower. I changed into the clothes she had told me to wear. I looked in the mirror, my face, pale and smooth contrasted brilliantly with the grey sweater and black slacks. I tugged on the black high tops, and ran a comb through my hair. I smiled, sliding the card into my pocket, and clenched the flowers in my hand. I walked slowly towards the ramen shop, and stood outside. A few minutes later, a flash of pink caught my eye.

_Shweeeet._


	4. We Need To Talk

_Well, this hasn't been updated in a year, but-I'm trying to tie up all the loose ends on my stories (I hate leaving things unfinished) soooo, I hope you guys will accept the very, very, very late update._

She was wearing a tight black sweater dress that hugged her curves and showed off her legs. She eyed me carefully as she approached, before she started laughing.

"Did Ino pay you a business, by chance?" She asked, her eyes were narrow, and her expression comical.

"How'd you guess?" I said, holding out the flowers. She grinned and took them, sniffing them gingerly before sighing.

"These are gorgeous." She exclaimed, a wide smile on her face. "So are we going to eat?" She asked gesturing towards the ramen stand to the right of us. I grinned sheepishly, and shook my head.

"We have reservations," I began, she raised her eyebrows in curiosity, "So-follow me." I said, gesturing in front of me, she gave me a coy smile and we began walking towards the restaurant.

"So, have you done any artwork lately?" She asked, a small smile tugging at her lips. At a joke I didn't understand.

"No-Well, I got an assignment, from a banker..." I said slowly. She smiled.

"That's really good!" She exclaimed, literally patting me on the back. I grinned sheepishly as I held open the door of the restaurant for her. The restaurant was the type I had never been in before, with a menu with prices I had never imagined before. The woman who led us to our table was familiar in an odd sort of way, with sleek black hair and deep red eyes.

"Hello, my name is Kunerai, and I'll be your waitress for this evening. Can I get you two something to drink?" Sakura looked at me and I gestured for her to go ahead.

"Can we see your wine menu?" She asked, completely at home in this elegant situation. I felt nervous and out of place among the gold plated men and women at the tables around us. The waitress reached into her pocket and pulled out two menus and set them in front of us. She waited patiently as Sakura and I looked over the menu-well I pretended to. "Is the Perrier Jouet La Fleur good with you?" She asked looking at me.

"Oh, of course." I continued pretending that I knew what she was talking about. The rest of the evening went by smoothly, Sakura asked me questions about my life and family, I answered truthfully, skipping over the parts of being abandoned by my family as we ate, by saying that my father had passed away at a young age.

"I'm sorry." She said softly, lowering her eyes.

"Oh, it's fine, I didn't really know him." But the pain in my voice betrayed me, and she smiled sympathetically. It reminded me of the look Ino had on her face when she talked about Sakura not dating much. My curiosity got the better of me. "Ino mentioned something about you not dating much..." I said quietly. Her face was falsely indifferent-a mask of unfeeling-completely blank.

"Oh, I keep busy so I don't really get out much, you know?" She answered after a second forcing a chuckle. I frowned. "What about you, do you date much?"

"No. I don't." I replied, giving way to an awkward silence. After a minute or two the waitress came over once more with a check.

"Come again soon!" She exclaimed. I nodded and thanked her, as Sakura pulled out her purse.

"I've got it." I told her quickly, glancing at the check and pulling both hundred dollar bills out of my pocket.

"Thank you for a wonderful evening." She said standing up, "But I really must be going, it's late." I nodded as she left with a strained parting smile. I buried my head in my hands. Way to blow it.

I sat in the back room of my apartment a canvas in front of me and a paintbrush in my hand, just finishing the painting of the flowers and vase for the banker. I signed the corner of it with a flourish and looked at it. It was probably just in my head, the seemingly deadness of the flowers, as though they were wilting. The darkness of the vase brought out the dramatic sadness of the vase. Besides the tone, something else was wrong. Cherry Blossoms weren't red. I had painted red Cherry Blossoms. Sakura...Cherry Blossoms...I threw the paint brush down on the table next to me. This was ridiculous. It was a stupid bad date, it didn't matter. I sighed as there was a knock on my door, and stood up grabbing a towel. I opened the door, wiping the paint off my hands, and to my surprise it wasn't the Anko the landlord at the door.

"We need to talk." The intruder said, pushing past me into my appartment.


End file.
